CTA unsure when they'll be able to run trains on the Yellow Line after an embankment gave way.

The bad news for CTA Yellow Line riders: Service will be shut down at least for several days, with no clear idea of when it will resume.

The good news: CTA operators spotted problems related to the collapse of an embankment that supported the tracks, leading to the line's closure before anyone was hurt.

The embankment collapsed along McCormick Boulevard between Howard and Oakton streets in Skokie because of a Metropolitan Water Reclamation District construction project, CTA officials said Monday.

Between 9:20 and 9:40 Sunday night, operators notified the CTA control center of a small bend in the rail and of downed power lines, said CTA spokeswoman Tammy Chase, though it was unclear whether the embankment had already given way. Rail service was suspended and replaced by shuttle bus service soon after, Chase said.

During the rail closure, shuttle buses will run from the two Yellow Line stops in Skokie to its terminus at the Howard Avenue stop in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood, where commuters transfer to the Purple and Red Lines.

The CTA also encouraged riders to consider the 97 Skokie bus, which stops near all three Yellow Line stations.

"The MWRD is sharing information with us on repairs that will help determine a more accurate timeline for service restoration," the CTA said in a news release.

While officials said they were trying to make the track safe Monday morning, Skokie commuters scrambled to figure out how to make it to work and school in downtown Chicago.

CTA officials are unsure of when trains will be able to run on the Yellow Line again after part of a track embankment gave out. (WGN-TV)

CTA officials are unsure of when trains will be able to run on the Yellow Line again after part of a track embankment gave out. (WGN-TV)

Marinara Tamayao, a Skokie resident and sophomore at DePaul University, said while waiting for a shuttle at a downtown Skokie stop Monday that she understands that this "kind of stuff happens." Still, she said, it's inconvenient.

"The worst part about this is I'm losing class time and it's close to finals," Tamayao said.

Andrew Ramos, of Morton Grove, said he had to call the downtown law firm where he works to explain that he would be late for a morning meeting.

"Not a lot you can do," Ramos said from the Yellow Line shuttle at Dempster, where he was waiting Monday. "I don't think we can file a lawsuit."

Randy Miles, owner of Village Inn Pizzeria in downtown Skokie, said that the disruption also will affect his employees who get to the center of town on the Yellow Line and those who use it to go to Cubs games.

WGN-TV

WGN-TV

"It's very crowded," Miles said of the line.

The embankment collapse occurred during the construction of the disinfection project at the O'Brien water reclamation plant, according to Allison Fore, a spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.

The plant removes pollutants from wastewater, according to the MWRD website. One of seven within the boundaries of the district, it serves 1.3 million people in the northern Cook County suburbs and in Chicago north of Fullerton Avenue.

"The exact cause is unknown and is being investigated," Fore wrote in an email. "The district is working with its contractor and CTA to resolve any issues as soon as possible. We apologize for any inconvenience this incident has caused."

McCormick Boulevard from Oakton to Howard streets was closed Monday morning, Skokie officials said in a news release. It was reopened in the early afternoon, police said.

Last year the Yellow Line celebrated its 50th anniversary. The line starts in a commercial area at Dempster Street and Skokie Boulevard and stops in downtown Skokie before it moves east to Howard. The downtown station at Oakton opened in 2012 next to the Illinois Science and Technology Park, a 24-acre research campus.

The Yellow Line has the smallest ridership of the CTA's eight lines, according to online data. Last year, 986,000 passengers entered Yellow Line stations. During weekdays, about 2,900 use the Yellow Line, on average.